I'll begin by saying this: I know how to take care of myself. I know what needs to be done to keep myself happy and healthy. I stick to my regimens and rituals: I eat whole, natural foods, exercise regularly, wash my face morning and night, brush my teeth, comb my hair, do my schoolwork, and carefully balance my free time between family, friends, boyfriend, and, well, me.
When something bighappens--either positive or negative--I take a step back. I say, Juliana, this is going to mess with the order of things. Adjust. And I adjust. It takes a little extra planning, but if I know it's coming, I can handle big, ominous stressers. While my mood may dampen or heighten significantly, my taking-care-of-myself practices stay in place, and it helps me stay level-headed.
But what gets me are the little things. The ones that you don't notice right away, and/or build up over time. A number of large homework assignments I've put off until the last minute; the effects of a bad haircut; realizing I need to find a summer internship; getting a gym membership and realizing I've just made one more contractual commitment; skimping on sleep; etc. Because yes, this past weekend, I was hit with these and more, and started to a) break out, b) undereat, c) lose focus...the works. My poor boyfriend (T, from now on)didn't know what to do as I proceeded to have several mini panic attacks (getting short of breath, completely losing my head and spontaneously crying).
The scary thing was: I didn't know why I was freaking out. It took me some time to realize that it was stress. Before that, I honestly was considering some kind of disease, because I'm telling you--I felt straight up weird, physically and mentally. The great thing is: once I realized what it was, I went into adjust mode.
I immediately started working on my homework assignments, ate a good meal, and went to bed early.
For breakfast the next morning, I had eggs, whole wheat toast with olallieberry jam, and a modest amount of coffee.
I headed over to T's house and we juiced. :) Recipe to follow.
I left ample time for my transit back to school (I was home for the weekend), and continued to do homework on the bus.
I got back to my apartment, finished my homework, had whole wheat pasta for dinner, and proceeded to do what always makes me feel better: write. And now, I'm happy to report, I'm doing a-okay.
So there it is: my recipe for curing a bad case of the little stresses. I know we've heard it all before, but I cannot overstate how true it is that enough sleep, a healthy diet and good time management are central to keeping your head, heart, body and soul in order.
That said, here's a component of the healthy diet requirement that T and I have become a little obsessed with. He got a juicer for Christmas (expensive little things...) and, after some trial and error, we've come to like this mixture of fruits and veggies.
Ingredients for J and T's Magic Juice:
1 bunch of Imperator carrots (the long, thin kind) - 6 or 7
4 beets
1 ginger root, 4-5 inches long
1 apple
1 pineapple
1 bunch curly-leaf kale
1 bunch spinach
The ginger and beets are meant to mask the flavor of the greens, and lend the juice a bit of a zing. The pineapple is what really makes it taste great, and the beets are what turn it blood red.
If you don't have a juicer--which I'm sure most people don't, I find them a little silly/extravagant/superfluous, though I'm thoroughly enjoying ours--the juice can be made by mixing ingredients in a blender, and then straining. And of course it goes without saying that this is just our favorite; so I recommend it wholeheartedly while also encouraging deviation and creativity. Juicing is kind of like concocting a potion: you never know what delicious and beneficial (or utterly disastrous, haha) result you might end up with.
Well, I'm off to bed (step 1 of the happy-and-healthy recipe). Wishing you all peace of mind, body, heart, and soul.
Love, Maralah
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